Stop Moaning - We've Never Had It So Good Apparently
Fuel and food prices are rising, along with mortgage bills, and inflation has hit its highest level in 16 years. But a minister was criticised last night for claiming on his blog that Britons have never had more spending power and questioning why people are so "bloody miserable".
Tom Harris, a junior transport minister and MP for Glasgow South, said that despite the credit squeeze, people in Britain have never been so well-off, and complained that they seemed to be afflicted by "crippling levels of cynicism and pessimism".
Under the heading "Heaven knows we're miserable now," Harris wrote: "High-def TVs fly off the shelves at Tesco quicker than they can be imported. Whatever the latest technological innovation, most people can treat themselves to it.
"Eating out - a rare treat when I was a child in the 70s - is as commonplace as going shopping. And when we do go shopping, whether for groceries or for clothes, we spend money in quantities that would have made our parents gasp."
Harris conceded that job security has dwindled, but wrote: "The corollary of that is the tremendous real-terms rises in incomes over the years and the consequent improvements in quality of life.
"There are more two-car homes in Britain today than there are homes without a car. We live longer, eat healthier (if we choose), have access to forms of entertainment never imagined a generation ago. The majority of us have fast access to the worldwide web, which we use to enable even more spending. Crime is down. So why is everyone so bloody miserable?"
His comments drew a sharp response from the shadow treasury chief secretary, Philip Hammond. He said: "The short answer to Mr Harris's question asking why everyone is so miserable is, 'We've got Gordon Brown as our prime minister'."
Tom Harris, a junior transport minister and MP for Glasgow South, said that despite the credit squeeze, people in Britain have never been so well-off, and complained that they seemed to be afflicted by "crippling levels of cynicism and pessimism".
Under the heading "Heaven knows we're miserable now," Harris wrote: "High-def TVs fly off the shelves at Tesco quicker than they can be imported. Whatever the latest technological innovation, most people can treat themselves to it.
"Eating out - a rare treat when I was a child in the 70s - is as commonplace as going shopping. And when we do go shopping, whether for groceries or for clothes, we spend money in quantities that would have made our parents gasp."
Harris conceded that job security has dwindled, but wrote: "The corollary of that is the tremendous real-terms rises in incomes over the years and the consequent improvements in quality of life.
"There are more two-car homes in Britain today than there are homes without a car. We live longer, eat healthier (if we choose), have access to forms of entertainment never imagined a generation ago. The majority of us have fast access to the worldwide web, which we use to enable even more spending. Crime is down. So why is everyone so bloody miserable?"
His comments drew a sharp response from the shadow treasury chief secretary, Philip Hammond. He said: "The short answer to Mr Harris's question asking why everyone is so miserable is, 'We've got Gordon Brown as our prime minister'."